Gaza bombings a boon for smugglers
Israeli air strikes continue to hit Gaza, and over the weekend 40 underground tunnels on the Egyptian border were bombed. Daniel Estrin reports some smugglers stand to make good money off of the crisis.
Smoke billows from bombed tunnels in Rafah on Gaza's border with Egypt, following Israeli air strikes on the area -- December 28, 2008. (Said Khatib/AFP/Getty Images)
More on International, Middle East
TEXT OF STORY
Steve Chiotakis: The world is keeping an eye on the Middle East this morning as deadly violence continues there in the Gaza Strip. Today's Israeli air strikes targeted Hamas strongholds. A general strike has shut down banks and businesses there. But not all business in Gaza has come to a standstill. Daniel Estrin has this report.
Daniel Estrin: Over the weekend, Israeli warplanes bombed 40 underground tunnels on the border between Egypt and Gaza. Israel says those tunnels are used to smuggle in weapons, missiles and even foreign fighters.
But the tunnel industry has also dominated Gaza commerce. Israel's sanctions on Gaza restrict certain consumer goods, so smugglers squeeze through everything from refrigerators to Viagra.
There are about 800 tunnels altogether. And Omar Shaban, a Gaza-based economist, says some smugglers are making good money off of the crisis.
Omar Shaban (voice of interpreter): These people who are managing or owning these tunnels will use this opportunity to raise the prices, and they'll profit from it. Because working the tunnels during such Israeli military operation becomes more risky.
Shaban says that there are rumors floating around the Gaza Strip that some rockets launched into Israel have been paid for by tunnel operators -- because crisis drums up their business.
From Jerusalem, I'm Daniel Estrin for Marketplace.
Comments
Comment | Refresh
Post a Comment: Please be civil, brief and relevant.
Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. All comments are moderated. Marketplace reserves the right to edit any comments on this site and to read them on the air if they are extra-interesting. Please read the Comment Guidelines before posting.
You must be 13 or over to submit information to American Public Media. The information entered into this form will not be used to send unsolicited email and will not be sold to a third party. For more information see Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.